The effects of inbreeding, genetic dissimilarity and phenotype on male reproductive success in a dioecious plant
- Austerlitz, Frédéric Laboratoire Ecologie, Systématique et Evolution, UMR CNRS 8079, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay Cedex, France
- Gleiser, Gabriela Laboratorio Ecotono, INIBIOMA, Universidad del Comahue, CONICET, 8400 Bariloche, Argentina
- Teixeira, Sara Institute of Environmental Sciences, University of Zurich, CH 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Bernasconi, Giorgina Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, CH 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
- 2011-5-11
Published in:
- Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. - The Royal Society. - 2011, vol. 279, no. 1726, p. 91-100
General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
General Immunology and Microbiology
General Agricultural and Biological Sciences
General Environmental Science
General Medicine
English
Pollen fate can strongly affect the genetic structure of populations with restricted gene flow and significant inbreeding risk. We established an experimental population of inbred and outbred
Silene latifolia
plants to evaluate the effects of (i) inbreeding depression, (ii) phenotypic variation and (iii) relatedness between mates on male fitness under natural pollination. Paternity analysis revealed that outbred males sired significantly more offspring than inbred males. Independently of the effects of inbreeding, male fitness depended on several male traits, including a sexually dimorphic (flower number) and a gametophytic trait (
in vitro
pollen germination rate). In addition, full-sib matings were less frequent than randomly expected. Thus, inbreeding, phenotype and genetic dissimilarity simultaneously affect male fitness in this animal-pollinated plant. While inbreeding depression might threaten population persistence, the deficiency of effective matings between sibs and the higher fitness of outbred males will reduce its occurrence and counter genetic erosion.
Pollen fate can strongly affect the genetic structure of populations with restricted gene flow and significant inbreeding risk. We established an experimental population of inbred and outbred
plants to evaluate the effects of (i) inbreeding depression, (ii) phenotypic variation and (iii) relatedness between mates on male fitness under natural pollination. Paternity analysis revealed that outbred males sired significantly more offspring than inbred males. Independently of the effects of inbreeding, male fitness depended on several male traits, including a sexually dimorphic (flower number) and a gametophytic trait (
pollen germination rate). In addition, full-sib matings were less frequent than randomly expected. Thus, inbreeding, phenotype and genetic dissimilarity simultaneously affect male fitness in this animal-pollinated plant. While inbreeding depression might threaten population persistence, the deficiency of effective matings between sibs and the higher fitness of outbred males will reduce its occurrence and counter genetic erosion.
- Language
-
- English
- Open access status
- bronze
- Identifiers
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- DOI 10.1098/rspb.2011.0652
- ISSN 0962-8452
- Persistent URL
- https://folia.unifr.ch/global/documents/193429
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